Mexican prosecutors have issued an arrest warrant in the mysterious death of Shanquella Robinson, a North Carolina woman who was vacationing in Cabo San Lucas, where her travel mates said she died from alcohol poisoning.
Daniel de la Rosa Anaya, local prosecutor for the state of Baja California Sur, told ABC News his office received a call at about 6:15 p.m. on Oct. 29 from a “public security member” who reported the death of a foreign woman in a house in the Fundadores Beach Club area in San José del Cabo.
The office treated the case like a femicide — the murder of a woman because of her gender.
“This case is fully clarified. We even have a court order. There is an arrest warrant issued for the crime of femicide to the detriment of the victim and against an alleged perpetrator, a friend of hers who is the direct aggressor,” de la Rosa Anaya said.
“Actually, it wasn’t a quarrel, but instead a direct aggression. We are carrying out all the pertinent procedures such as the Interpol alert and the request for extradition to the United States of America. It’s about two Americans, the victim and the culprit….”
Police Report Contradicts Death Certificate
New details from the investigation contradict information on her death certificate, reports show. Robinson’s death certificate shows she died 15 minutes after her back and spine were broken; however, Mexican publication MetropoliMx obtained a police report that shows a doctor was with the 25-year-old in her private villa in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, for nearly three hours before she died.
The Charlotte Observer also reported that it has excerpts from the police report that is written in Spanish.
The details of Robinson’s death went viral last week after her parents went to local media seeking answers about how she died. Robinson’s best friend, Khalil Cooke, who was among the group on the three-day weekend trip told Salamondra and Bernard Robinson their daughter was vomiting and suffering from alcohol poisoning. He called back later and said she died.
However, when the Robinsons received the death certificate about two weeks later, there was no mention of alcohol, and they learned she had broken bones.
The parents suspected foul play.
Black Twitter quickly gravitated to the story pushing it to the forefront. Someone on the trip sent a video of a woman punching and kicking Shanquella to a local blog. It is also spread like wildfire amplifying the calls for an investigation into the incident.
Posts about Shanquella went viral on Tik Tok, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram along with the hashtag #JusticeForQuella.
Mexican authorities and the FBI launched murder investigations into Shanquella’s death. Her mother said it probably wouldn’t have happened without Black social media users’ help.
“Everybody’s helping out,” she told NBC News. “I appreciate the ones working so hard to get justice done. We’re not done yet, but we’re going to get there.”
The newly obtained police report shows someone in the villa called for medical help at 2:13 p.m.
What Happened to Shanquella Robinson When Medical Help Arrived
Dr. Karolina Beatriz Ornelas Gutiérrez of the American Medical Center arrived about an hour later, according to The Charlotte Observer.
Gutiérrez told police she was advised that Shanquella had “drunk a lot of alcohol” and the call was for “an IV.” The doctor said she found a female with stable vital signs but dehydrated.
Shanquella was unable to speak and appeared to be inebriated, The Observer reports. Gutiérrez told the friends that Shanquella needed to be transported to a hospital, but they insisted that she be treated in the villa.
About an hour later, Shanquella started having a seizure.
“At this point, the patient’s friend, named Wenter Donovan, called 911 to request an ambulance,” according to the Observer’s Spanish-to-English translation of the report.
Gutiérrez and one of the friends started performing CPR on Shanquella until paramedics and police arrived. Paramedics made several more unsuccessful attempts to resuscitate the woman. The police report “declared her dead at 5:57 p.m.”
“When a U.S. citizen dies in a foreign country, local authorities are responsible for determining the cause of death and issuing a death certificate,” The U.S. Department of State told Atlanta Black Star in an email.
Shanquella’s death certificate says she died on Oct. 29 at 3 p.m. It is unclear why the documents differ and if it would impact the handling of the case.
Details of the death certificate were first released by local TV stations. The woman’s travel companions all returned to the states before her body was transported back and disappeared from social media. Reports show two out of the six other people registered at the villa listed telephones that are currently disconnected.
The FBI is still investigating the case as a homicide. The victim’s parents previously said they wanted everyone involved to face charges.
“I feel so good, that’s a good feeling. That’s what we have been waiting for, for someone to finally be held accountable and arrested,” Salamondra Robinson said. “I just can’t wait for justice to be served.”
